Railway sleeping-car



woman. I 2 Sheet-Sheet 1.

H. PEARSON. RAILWAY SLEEPING GAR.

No. 544,547. Patented Aug; 13, 1895.

(No Model) 2 Sheets--Sheet 2. H. PEARSON. RAILWAY SLEEPING GAR.

Patented Aug. 13, 1896.

4%77 ggs' UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE HENRY PEARSON, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS.

RAILWAY SLEEPING-CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part. of Letters Patent No. 544,547, dated August .13, 1895.

Application filed January 14,189 Serial No, 534,822. (KomodeL) To 00% whom it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, HENRY PEARSON, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Springfield, in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in Railway Sleeping-Cars, of which the following is a specification.

This invention for improvement in railway sleeping-cars consists in the interposition of means of connection or engagement between the berth and the hoisting-cables therefor, (of which there are several,) of means whereby onthe occasion, from any cause, of the slackening of the cable when the berth is being moved, the slack will be taken up, leaving the cable taut and without liability of becoming kinked or of in any manner impeding the lowering or raising actions.

The invention consists,in substance,in the combination and arrangement of a means of attachment or engagement between the berth and each of the cables therefor, consisting of a casing secured to the berth, a part movable therein to which the cable is connected, and

a spring for forcing the movable part downwardly in the casing, and against the stress of which is the draft of the cable.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view showing a part of a berth-pocket, as termed, the berth therein, and the trap-door or cover which may cover the berth-pocket and also serves as the supporting upright for the berth, the location of the. cable and berth connection being shown. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional View, on a larger scale, of

the aforenamed parts, the trap-door being in.

its upright position, the berth being raised out from the berth-pocket, and the details of construction of the cable and berth take-up connection being shown. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view similar to Fig. 2, but showing the trap-door as in its horizontal position over the berth which is in the berthpocket, the movable parts of the take-up connection being, however, in dilferent relative positions. Fig. at is a face view of an end portion of the berth at the corner thereof.

The trap-door A, which has substantially a hinge connection at one end of the berthpocket 0, has the sheave-cases a, (with sheaves therein,) over which the cables m pass, the cables running thereto from the hoistingdrum, (not shown,) they being guided by the sheaves at b, and the cables run from the sheaves on the trap-doors to their. connection with the ends of the berth, all as fully illustrated, described,land claimed in an application for Letters Patent filed by me December 31, 1894, Serial No. 533,434.

On the berth D, near each corner thereof, is the casing and guide B, it having the plate 20, by means of which it may be secured by screws, as shown, and it has the downwardlyopening bore 01, with the contracted opening fat its upper end, whereby is formed the internal shoulder 22. Within this bore is the tube g, externally threaded at its lower end. A sleeve h surrounds the tube, being supportedby the nut i, which screws onto the threaded lower end of the tube. The spiral spring j is applied between the sleeve h and the internal shoulder 22. The terminal of the cable is passed through the tube and has its lower 'end enlarged in any adequate and practicable manner, so as to be engaged'with the lower end of the sleeve, all as plainly shown in the drawings.

The weight of the berths is greatly in excess of the recoil of thesprings j. Hence when the berth is in suspension the springs will be compressed to their maximum. When the berth is lowered 'into the berth-pocket and the trap-door is swung downward, a slackening of the cable ensues, because of the fact that the point ofrunning engagement which the cable has with the sheave at b is offset from a plane parallel with the face of the trap-door which intersects the center of swinging movement at y of the trap-door. Therefore, as the door is swung downwardly and the distance between the sheaves at a and b slightly decreases, the tendency of the cable to slacken will be overcome by the action of the compensating connection described.

Having thus described my invention,what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a railway sleeping-car in combination, the berth having at its end a vertically applied casing or tubular guide, a part movably guided therein, the hoisting cable having its end entered through an opening therefor in tion with the berth having the casing secured thereto, of a tube havinga nut secured to its lower end, the cable passed through an opening in the top of the casing and through and connected withv said tube, the spiral spring Within the casing, surrounding said tube and cable, supported by the nut, and having an upper end bearing against a stop therefor within the casing,substantially as described.

HENRY PEARSON. Witnesses:

WM. S. BELLoWs, K41. CLuMoNs. 

